FAQs

1) Who is the Coalition Against Police Crimes and Repression (CAPCR)?

CAPCR formed in1983 under the leadership of Jamala Rogers and Zaki Baruti as a grassroots response to the police shooting death of Marilyn Banks. Because of CAPCR’s efforts the officer was brought to trial, but he was not found guilty.

CAPCR re-formed in 1996 in response to the police shooting death of Garland Carter, identifying three top priorities: 1) Justice for Garland, 2) Forming a best practices Civilian Oversight Board (COB), and 3) Gaining local control of the police department which had been controlled by the State of Missouri since the Civil War.

The officer in Garland’s murder was able to resign and move to the County—a frequently repeated pattern. CAPCR formed rapid response teams to respond to a myriad of officer shootings but it quickly became obvious we could not get justice for individuals. We pooled all our efforts to make our first priority getting a COB.

When that effort stalled due to a mayoral veto of legislation we got passed, we began a campaign for local control.

Local control of the police was finalized in 2013. A COB was established in 2015.

The current CAPCR co-chairs are Jamala Rogers and John Chasnoff. While CAPCR is a diverse group of people; we follow black leadership in the work we do.

2) What is CAPCR working on now?

In 2018 CAPCR has embarked upon public education campaigns on: 1) community policing, re-envisioning and re-investing in public safety, 2) “Transforming Police Culture – STL”, a resource that gives a global view of policing issues and how to transform the police mission in St. Louis., and 3) a presentation on Rapid Response teams which shares what we’ve learned about family advocacy when a family member has been killed by the police.

An analysis of the Civilian Oversight Board’s successes and need to fulfill its entire mandate will be forthcoming in the next few months.

Since the establishment of the Civilian Oversight Board in 2015, CAPCR remains involved to make sure the COB fulfills its public mandate. Similarly, CAPCR remains involved with legislators, the department of public safety, the police department and others to ensure an intentional transition in fulfilling this shift of leadership.

We are working, as part of a coalition named Privacy Watch STL, to get aldermanic oversight of the expanding surveillance hub in St. Louis. We are also a part of the Ferguson Collaborative to lift up the voices of those most affected by unconstitutional policing during the process of implementing the Department of Justice consent decree.

For a more complete view of the campaigns and issues CAPCR is working on, please continue to explore our website.

3) How can I get involved?

CAPCR holds general meetings every second Thursday of the month at the Rowan Center, 1401 Rowan Ave., St. Louis, MO (63112). Meetings are from 6:00 – 7:30 pm.

Please visit ourFacebook Page and website to keep current on CAPCR sponsored town halls and other CAPCR events.